The People Based On Ideology

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: At present, anti-Semitism is on the rise in the US. In institutions of higher learning, there were campaigns to evict Jewish students from hostels. What kind of future can we expect in the US with respect to this issue that, unfortunately, we must raise?

Answer: We only can say that, as our world becomes increasingly global and interconnected, the attitude toward Jews will deteriorate.

The fact is that the Jewish people appeared on Earth because a small group from Babylon that experienced a similar crisis 3,800 years ago decided to unite and reach a state of mutual responsibility, mutual connection, as it is written, “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.”

Abraham, a priest of ancient Babylon, united a group of people on this basis, and from this the people of Israel originated. In other words, according to our biological data, we are not a people like other nations. We are a people based on an idea because the principle of “Love thy neighbor as thyself” is the foundation of our formation.

We existed in this state from the time of the exit from Babylon to the destruction of the Second Temple, which occurred 2,000 years ago. During this time, we always were trying to be a single entity, as one man with one heart.

All the beautiful statements of “Love thy neighbor as thyself,” “That which you hate, do not do to your friend,” “All of Israel are brothers,” etc. speak about the essence of our community, which is called the “people.” However, basically, we are a people based on ideology and not because we were born in one tribe that gradually grew like the rest of the nations.

Therefore, our existence can be justified only if we are interconnected. However, the problem is that when we fell 2,000 years ago from the level of “Love thy neighbor as thyself” to unfounded hatred—which is, in principle, the “destruction of the Temple,” the Temple in the heart, the Temple in us—we went “into exile” from this state. In other words, we became as egoistic as all the other nations. Therefore, since then we have lived in such a pitiful state, in exile.

The first time, anti-Semitism appeared in ancient Rome, and then in Greece, because we had ceased to be as one whole.
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From Dr. Laitman’s  interview with Ashaya Films, US,  8/6/14

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How To Cure The Plague Of Anti-Semitism In The World
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Anti-Semitism As A Demand For Attention And Love

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